Revell's 1:700 Colombo Express container ship
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Very nice! Interesting detailing so far. Nice idea with the pins in the container stacks. I tried magnets but that unfortunately didn't work, haha.
I was this >< close to buying this kit as well at WME. Having second thoughts now 🙁
I've been on quite a few containervessels, and here are some thoughts, do with them as you please.
- The containerdoors should always face aft.
- The top of rows of the containers doesn't need to be flat. Containers can vary in height, and the individual stacks in a row can vary as well.
- The two rows of 20' containers at the bow are probably in a 40' bay, that's why they're snug together, instead of seperated. The two other rows are probably in a 45'foot bay.
- Containerships are rarely fully loaded, so it would be more realistic to take away some containers on the top rows, if possible. google.nl/search?q=c..bih=977&biw=1812
I love what you're doing with this ship. Besides of the 1/200 giants, there is relatively little love for ships here.
Interesting. The rear stack of containers certainly have their doors facing backwards. I guess I should reverse the other containers to match. I can do that, so that they all go to the rear, I had no idea.
The container stacks are symmetric, so you can flip them forwards or backwards. Could be that the guild guide states the doors to be facing backwards, but I didn't notice it. Anyway, not an issue really, one can just flip each stack any way as desired, forward or back. I thought maybe containers had doors on both sides, but I guess now that they typically don't, given your input.
Some of the containers do seem to vary in height, which I thought was odd but thought, might be realistic.
A reviewer complained that Revell filled the entire ship with containers, which he thought was not realistic, but I don't know anything about that. He spent some time apparently, in his build, varying the stacks by cutting them apart, I can't be assed to do that myself. 🙂
I wish kit makers made more 20th century ships and other non-military ships in some sensible scale. I think ships in general, tend to look beautiful.
I think this kit, although probably flawed, has nice plastic overall, so recommended.
Me adding guiding pins, sort made the container stacks look non vertical here and there, but once pressed onto the deck, the container stacks should align and be perfectly vertical.
I think I've seen photos, showing how there is also "rigging" wire on the ship as well, especially around each container stack.
That rigging are lashing rods weighing 17kg each. They tend to be used from deck level (or raised catwalk) into the lower corners of the 3rd row: google.nl/search?q=l..biw=1680&bih=947
They're always used crosswise.
Keep up the good work, hugger of trees 😄
I will try to be precise with the placement of the PE but I do not have the experience (to do "perfect" PE work). I will definitely use masking tape to hold the PE part in place, instead of my routine of just gently position the PE part with my finger tips, with superglue added first. I will use a glue loop tool to add a tiny amount of cyanoacrylate after first having taped and aligned the PE part in place first. Tricky part is aligning several railings, so that they all look horizontal. 🙂
I think I will airbrush the white structure (gluing on the PE doors first) and the deck green (easy masking)then airbrush the PE ladders separately, and maybe the PE railings, all white, then glue on the PE, then airbrush some more white on it all then remove the masking tape for the green decks. :| Hrm, no wait, that means I can't glue the PE ladders onto the masking tape. I guess for this project, I can just paint the PE stuff separately, and then glue the PE stuff onto a white/green model, then go over with a tiny brush to hide traces of glue.
about the location pins, it could have been easy to assembly the container blocks, strap them with masking tape in the correct places on the deck and drill the holes from underneath, before gluing the deck to the hull sides. Of course. i know it is too late to propose the idea, but it may be useful for others doing this kit.
I have a better idea (imo). 🙂 Just glue the container stacks on, then drill the holes.. then rip the container stacks off, assuming you didn't use too much glue in the first place. 🙂 Hopefully, it would be little clean up if anything.
Yeah, that bridge section also gave me major headaches. You are doing fine so far. Keep it up!
Thank you. 🙂 I do really like fiddling with just the plastic, but this is really a lot of work imo if you like me, like having flush seams. In photo 23 I finished fixing the bridge windows. I used a sharp blade to gently carving the window openings larger and making them square/rectangular and with thinner frames. I initially wanted to replace the plastic with strip styrene, but it just would be too troublesome I think. I will keep the top side of the bridge separate and glue on after painting the structure white and the deck green.
Q: Any idea why the doors in photo 28 have this edge on top? I don't understand. I think I should maybe just remove the top edge and the two connecting pieces, because the two tiny connecting lines looks bad inbetween the door and the edge on top I think.
Stellar work so far! The rails above the doors are indeed a bit weird, if I look at them up close. When I built my Colombo Express I thought those rails are supposed to be the little fluorescent light tubes above the doors. If you check reference photos you can see them. But looking at it now.... not sure.
Great idea with the other glue, I really have to try that out for myself. Also good idea to bend the vents after the glue is setting. I didn't even use that part, hah.
So it turns out, I have accidentally glued on two of the larger side parts for the whole structure upside down. I don't think anyone will notice. After removing the moulded stairs, I got confused.
Hmmm.... You've got me puzzling about the doors.... What is shown in the PE instructions? They look like a deliberate extra, on the fret, and I'm wondering if they are to be used if you were to pose the door open? i.e. glue it down one side of the open doorway, so that when the door is then glued to the straight bar, the bar acts as a 'stand-off' from the 'wall'. The alternative is that it could be a gutter above the doorway, but again to be installed as a separate piece. I'm enjoying your build, and looking forward to the transformation when paints are added 🙂
Heh, the instructions for the Mk1 stuff is very much mediocre. I swear, some of the PE, aren't even in the PE build guide, like doors and some stuff on the very top iirc. Obviously, the PE doors are meant to replace the existing moulded doors, so that is fairly trivial to work with, if one remembers or takes photo before removing the plastic doors.
Looking at photos, the exhaust pipes on top (shown in some other photo), is steel colored on the outside. I think I might try just some metallic varnish powder or something instead of airbrushing on steel metal color.
I am very happy with the use of this water based gel glue I found in my generic supermarket store. It probably won't prevent things being knocked, off, but seems very much suitable for placing PE onto the plastic, and if you add primer paint, color and a gloss coat, I think that is good enough, assuming you don't bump the model into things (which will probably never happen anyway). 🙂
Oh my god, Treehugger. Did you accidentally glue the sides of the super structure the wrong way? ME TOO. I think this is kind of a design flaw or at least the manual should take extra care to point that out. I also had to fix this mistake, haha.
Other than that, really great work! This will look absolutely beautiful.
So, heh, the visual clue for spotting the mistake in my case, is that the two windows on each side, is now on the lower level, instead of the upper level. The larger plastic parts, for the side, covers two stories/levels.
I recently think I've learned that I should stop adding Vallejo thinner for no good reason, and so it seems I avoid a lot of tip drying not adding thinner, and instead relying on mixing Vallejo primer with just a little bit of flow enhancer. Wiping the plastic with rubbing alcohol seems like it maybe helps the primer stick better as well was my impression, but maybe only an issue if I have plastic with non-trivial amounts of greasy stains on it from my finger tips.
Adding too much flow enhancer and the airbrush paint becomes runny right away, and even if applied ok, the paint becomes sticky to the touch.
Regarding the PE railings: I did have little "stubs" on the lower side of them. I dipped them in a bit of superglue and placed them very carefully on the ship. The little bit of superglue on the feet did indeed hold everything in place. I am pretty sure if you use your other glue method it will be fine. I did have slow drying CA. They can look wonky in parts, yes, but it's not very noticeable imho.
Good luck! 😄
Thank you all. 🙂
So I play too much Squad these days and there are aspects with this build that I find tedious, but it is moving along.
I was thinking, I could also use masking tape to tape the railings onto the side, at perfect placement, and then add super glue at the bottom, then remove the tape and add more superglue on the sides of the railings.
I keep being surprised at how noticeable tiny scratches and pits become visible in the plastic if you just look at it closely, and in the sunlight. So I spend some extra time going over and fixing such flaws.
I procrastinate my 1/400 - 1/500 ships because of the damn railings and you do it in 1/700! Hats off, very clean and precise 👍
Thank you. 🙂
I think I can make are really nice model, but I often get in trouble by overthinking things, and growing impatient, so this build is greatly delayed. I have to find the time to glue on the many, many side PE railings, and start the basic airbrushing work, then I can just plop down the whole bridge structure later, and also the containers. Anyway, fiddling with the plastic if what I think is the most fun, so I am having fun, just going a bit slow. I am also fiddling with a 1:32 resin/3D printed Viggen, just basic stuff. Hopefully, the next time I do some airbrushing, I will get better results than ever. Hopefully I have recently learned from some old mistakes like needlessly having added thinner, causing tip dry and other issues perhaps.
Well, by the end of this, you will not only be the railings expert, but will have created a very neat and tidy ship that you can be proud of. I for one, am learning lots from your shared experiences and novel solutions 🙂 Slow but steady wins the race.......
Album info
Note:
The photo etch stairs, require removal of plastic, in order to rise at an angle of 45 deg. The top most stairs, has to be shortened, gently, with a PE file, to rise at an angle of 45 deg.
Note2:
Kit box individual container decals = 130
Kit box individual containers = 342
Additional aftermarket container decals (White Ensign Models) = 120
130+120=250 decals for 342 containers, leaving 92 containers without decals
Note3: If you want to use guides for attaching the many PE railings at the side of the ship, you REALLY have to add the PE railings, before adding the stuff on top of the deck, because that stuff overarches the PE railings, preventing using guides there if you glued on the stuff already on top of the deck.
Eventually I managed to buy this kit at a nice price, having waited a couple of years and also having bought the photo etch set for this Revell kit, a long time ago.
Although Revell, the molding of the plastic looked nice and clean and all the container stacks were fun to build and glue together.
I also have an extra decal sheet for container logos to mix things up a little.
When adding the photo etch railings, I must remember to use a strip of masking tape, to fix the railings and align the PE parts properly, before adding glue, else the PE might look not straight alongside the ship.
Having all the added pins for placing the stacks of containers on the ship, isn't necessary, but I prefer making them, to avoid having the parts just fall off the deck too easily, also, makes it easier I think to eventually glue on the painted containers to the painted ship. Also, best to number the container stacks with a marker pen before proceeding with the build.